Bishops urge action to change BCRA

From the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops:

Urge Changes to U.S. Senate's Better Care Reconciliation Act

BACKGROUND: On June 22, the U.S. Senate released the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017 (BCRA), its proposed replacement of the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). Due to the bill's open-amendment process, your senators have the ability to meaningfully alter the bill from its present form before it is brought to a vote after the July 4 recess.

The bishops value language currently in the legislation recognizing that abortion is not health care by attempting to prohibit the use of taxpayer funds to pay for abortion or plans that cover it. However, they have serious concerns about flawed elements of the proposal.

In a June 22 statement on the bill, Bishop Frank J. Dewane of Venice, Florida, Chairman of the U.S. Bishops' Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, noted, "It is precisely the detrimental impact on the poor and vulnerable that makes the Senate draft unacceptable as written." Bishop Dewane provided a more detailed critique of the BCRA in a June 26 letter to members of the U.S. Senate.

Contacting your senators in the next several days could make a significant impact on the final text of the bill.

TAKE ACTION: Send a message to U.S. Senators Bill Nelson and Marco Rubio and urge them to ensure the Better Care Reconciliation Act:

1. Strips out harmful changes to Medicaid that will wreak havoc on the poor and vulnerable, including the per capita caps;

2. Provides protections for the unborn in all respects, including Hyde amendment prohibitions on use of federal funds on abortions or plans that cover it;

3. Includes conscience protections for those involved in the health care system.